


Macrocallista nimbosa

by zealous_whispers_of_us



Series: The Sea Calls Us Home [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Merperson Bucky Barnes, reader is a siren
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:49:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26059780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zealous_whispers_of_us/pseuds/zealous_whispers_of_us
Summary: Merpeople love their stories, and Bucky is no different.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader
Series: The Sea Calls Us Home [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1821502
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Macrocallista nimbosa

**Author's Note:**

> Her song is pretty much "Love Sonnet XI" by Pablo Neruda, and I thought it fit her overall vibe of eating things. Also, I know it ended weird, but I was just wanting to post it so bad.

They had swum through cold seas and warm seas. They had been through the deep oceans and were almost caught when they ventured too close to humans living on shallow seas. Bucky had brought her to the Marianas Trench to see the bones of ships that sat rotting underneath the waves. Much to his delight and pride, this was her favorite place. He was unable to venture deep down with her, so she would occasionally return to tell him all that she saw. She would bring up strange fish for him to eat and octopi to pet. There were always at least three different creatures swimming after her. She had even made a friend in a frilled shark. It was a terrifying thing to look at, but it followed her up from the deep and bumped her hand to get her to pet it. It was because of this shark (and Bucky's inability to refuse her) that they had settled in a cave not far from the trench itself.

They had been there for two weeks, and Bucky watched her every day. Every day, she opened up more and more. She rarely talked, but Bucky knew what she was feeling, could read the meaning behind every one of her songs. He knew her now. He knew that she liked to talk about her mother and that she remembered more about her human life than she would have preferred. He knew that she rarely slept at night. He knew that she named the shark Alcibiades and would not allow him to eat creatures she had named. Bucky knew that she liked his hair and his stories. And he knew that she did not understand the point of shiny things, nor the proper way Bucky wanted to be courted. But she hunted for him, and Bucky knew what she was trying to tell him anyway. Sometimes, they would hold hands, and even more infrequently, they would kiss. She was a quick learner. Whenever they kissed now, Bucky _ached._ His stomach was almost always some tint of pink when ~~his~~ siren was near, but Gods bless her, she never questioned why. Because how was Bucky supposed to explain to her that when his belly flashed a bright pink, that meant he was _horny?_

"Do you want me to find you another fish? You are not eating," she said one evening.

Bucky felt his belly heat in embarrassment. She had caught him. He had been trying to figure out how to tell her about his feelings. Mating season was months and months away, but he wanted her so much anyway that he wanted to scream. He had given her his shell ages ago, but he had yet to mention it again. 

"No, it's great," he mumbled, waving the fish around. "My favorite."

"But, you are not eating it."

"It's okay. 'M not hungry."

"We have been swimming all day. If I am hungry, you are hungry."

She had gotten better at worrying about him, too. Bucky tried not to think about that too hard because it made his heart do all sorts of funny things.

"No, it's-" Bucky stopped and sighed, running his hand over his face. "C'n I tell you a story?"

Mer were natural storytellers. By the time they were old enough to speak, they were encouraged to write stories or poems. Love poems were shared amongst mates or potential mates, but Bucky never really had a knack for poetry. His talents were better suited for adventurous tales of heroes and monsters. The story he wanted to tell her, though, was his first venture into romance. Bucky hoped she would understand his message.

"Okay. Is it a true story?" she asked.

"Almost. It's about a pirate captain."

"Okay."

And with her permission, Bucky began telling his tale.

"Long ago, before you an' I were even alive, there lived a pirate captain. She was known to be one of th' cruelest pirates on the seven seas. Everyone was afraid of her, includin' her crew. But there was no denyin' that she was the best pirate that had ever lived. Her ship was the fanciest, she had _piles_ of gold hidden all over the world, and her ship was the fastest ship on the ocean. Some say that she had the favor of Poseidon himself, and that's why her ship sailed so fast. But she had a secret side to her that she let no one ever see."

"What?" she interrupted.

"She was kind. She had a heart of gold. Her heart was broken once before, though, so she hid that side of her as best she could. It's easier to be mean than to risk it all by giving your heart away to another, right? But then, a few years into her career as the most fearsome pirate, a most curious thing happened. You know what it was?"

"No."

"She met a mermaid. Her mind started goin' crazy with the possibilities, the money that she could make if she caught this creature, the gold, the riches, th' _fame._ She wanted so badly to catch the mermaid and spent hours creatin' the perfect plan. At night the mermaid knew everyone aboard the ship was asleep, so she would surface for a quick peek. The pirate captain decided to shoot a harpoon through her tail the moment she heard the mermaid surface. Not to kill her but to injury her enough to drag her aboard and tie her up. An' the plan went perfectly, but as the captain was tyin' the mermaid up, the mermaid opened her eyes and looked right at her as though the mermaid could see the captain's very soul. The captain was stunned. She had never seen such a beautiful creature in all her life. So, she let her go."

"Good."

"Ah, but that isn't the end. You see, the captain made the mermaid _promise_ to return to her boat, to which the mermaid did. Night after night, they met in secret, talkin' about everything. And slowly, the pirate captain opened up like coral spawnin' in the Great Barrier Reef. She made room in her heart for the mermaid. She became less cruel, though no less determined. She was still a pirate, after all. But she remembered what it was like to feel human, what it felt like to have someone always on your side. Her crew was great, but it just wasn't th' same. With the mermaid, she felt like she had everythin.' She felt less alone."

"Good," she said again.

"One night, almost a year after they had met, the mermaid met the pirate captain as usual. She was quieter that night, almost shy. She handed the pirate captain an incredibly beautiful shell, but before the captain could ask, the mermaid had fled. The pirate captain was confused. The shell was certainly beautiful, but why did giving her such a thing render the mermaid speechless? Surely there were plenty of these shells in the ocean. It took a week for the mermaid to return. In that time, the pirate captain was frantic, thinkin' the mermaid had gotten hurt or captured. She was about ready to dive in after the mermaid when the mermaid reappeared. The pirate captain was so relieved an' happy that she jumped into the sea, wrapped the mermaid up in her arms, an' kissed her. An' when they kissed, the pirate captain finally knew what this was. They were in love. Th' mermaid loved her, and she loved th' mermaid. The end," Bucky finished.

"That was pretty," she said, smiling.

"Heh, thanks," Bucky said sheepishly.

"What kind of shell was it?"

"Th' kind mer give to whoever they wanna be with for th' rest of their lives, not just for matin' season," Bucky swallowed, his tongue feeling heavy in his mouth. "A sunray venus clamshell."

" _Macrocallista nimbosa_ ," she said automatically.

Then she paused. She stopped chewing on her meal. Her eyes darted back and forth as though she was thinking quite hard about something, and Bucky began to feel sick with nerves.

"Are _you_ the mermaid?" she finally asked.

"Erm, technically, yeah," Bucky whispered.

" _I_ am the pirate?"

"Yes."

"The shell you gave me is a _Macrocallista nimbosa_ too. Oh." She met Bucky's eyes. "You want to spend the rest of your life with me?"

"I do," Bucky answered, swimming close. "If you'll let me."

"Yes," she said, curling her tail around Bucky's. She took his hands. "Okay."

Bucky felt like he could fly. He wanted to twirl and flip- wanted to leap out of the water and spin like a dolphin calf seeing the sky for the first time. 

"C'n I kiss you now?" he said instead.

"No. You eat," she said.

"One kiss an' then I'll eat, okay? I promise."

"No, _now."_

"Fine, fine, okay, twist my tail. I'll eat. But only if you sing for me."

She laughed, which was a strange sound like she forgot how to do it, but it was a laugh just the same. Bucky's heart lifted in his chest. He felt his belly turning pink. 

"You bargain with a siren when the song I sing could mean your death?" she said. 

Bucky grinned, kissing her forehead.

"I know you wouldn't hurt me. Sing while I eat. Please?"

 _"I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair,"_ she began. " _Silent and starving, I hunt. Fish does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day. I hunt for the liquid beat of your heart. I hunger for your stories, your hands the color of the summer harvest, hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails; I want to eat your skin. I want to eat the sunbeam flaring in your lovely body, the sovereign nose of your arrogant face, I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes-"_

"Finished!" said Bucky, flinging the fish bones away. "C'n I get a kiss now?"

"Yes."

So, Bucky did. 


End file.
